Who Really Taught Bruce Lee Kung Fu (Not Ip Man)
Ip Man is well known for becoming Bruce Lee’s kung fu learn, but he’s not truly the one particular who taught him kung fu. Here is who his actual instructor was.
Even with Ip Man’s track record for getting Bruce Lee’s kung fu master, he’s not essentially the person liable for most of the actor’s martial arts schooling. It’s well-documented that the kung fu legend was a scholar of Ip Person through the 1950s. The coaching he received at Ip Man’s faculty created the basis for the kung fu stills that he became so well known for afterwards in everyday living.
Ip Guy was a significantly respected Wing Chun grandmaster who lived in Hong Kong for a important part of his existence. For the duration of that time, he took a teenage Lee as a university student and paved the way for Bruce Lee to turn out to be a martial arts pro. Their relationship was highlighted in the Ip Man videos, which starred Donnie Yen. Lee educated at Ip Man’s school for a couple yrs before getting despatched to the United States the place he finished his higher school education and learning. Many thanks in significant section to the understanding and experience he acquired at Ip Man’s Wing Chun school, Lee was equipped to open up martial arts colleges of his very own and develop a one of a kind kung fu type termed Jeet Kune Do.
Whilst it’s true that Ip Person was instrumental in Bruce Lee’s journey to turning out to be a kung fu legend, it is worth noting that not approximately plenty of credit rating is presented to Wong Shun Leung, who actually played a much much more lively purpose in Lee’s improvement as a Wing Chun practitioner. Due to the fact Ip Guy was understandably way too busy to independently oversee the coaching of each and every student, he delegated individual, one particular-on-one lessons to his senior students. The particular person tasked with educating Lee was Wong Shun Leung. For the duration of his Wing Chun coaching, Lee used most of his time mastering from Wong and only received occasional lessons from Ip Guy himself.
Bruce Lee’s Connection With Wong Shun Leung Stated
In a letter Lee wrote to Wong yrs right after leaving Hong Kong, the actor acknowledged the simple fact that Wong Shun Leung was the a person who taught him kung fu (and not Ip Man). In the letter, Lee mentioned, “Even although I am (technically) a pupil of Ip Guy, in actuality, I learned my kung fu from you.” What Lee conveyed in his letters to Wong demonstrates how much he valued the advice that Wong supplied throughout his teenage years and demonstrates that the two preserved some diploma of get in touch with soon after Lee’s kung fu film job kicked off. Lee even invited him to the set of Enter the Dragon to observe the the struggle scenes.
In accordance to Bruce Lee: A Existence by Matthew Polly, Lee’s respect for Wong was accompanied by an curiosity in one particular day surpassing him. A long time just after schooling underneath Wong, Lee challenged his mentor to a pleasant sparring match to see if the scholar could finally beat the master. Primarily based on an account from a single of Wong’s learners, Lee won the struggle (even nevertheless neither Lee nor Wong could concur on the result). On the lookout at how significantly Bruce Lee was equipped to come and the abilities he demonstrated in his 5 kung fu films, there’s no denying that Wong Shun Leung skilled Ip Man’s student properly.
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